Super Mario Bros. Crossover FAQ

Super Mario Bros. Crossover

What new features will be in version 4.0?

Some new features we get automatically are widescreen support, gamepad support, an unlocked frame rate, and a higher rendering resolution.

For gameplay, the only feature I have added so far is multiple versions of the same character, which we can refer to as subcharacters. For example, when you choose Link, you will be able to choose the zelda 1 or Zelda 2 version. I may do SMB3 Mario as well. Also, when I rewrote things, I made everything more flexible. For example, the skinning system is much more powerful now, although nothing is taking advantage of it yet. For a more in-depth discussion of what the new codebase means, listen to the first 30 minutes of episode 4 of the podcast.

Keep in mind that my top priority is implementing the features of the flash version, so I am not very focused on new features right now. I am curious to know what the most requested features are so I can do them later though, so please post what you want in #smbc-feature-requests.

Why did you resume development?

I needed to develop a platforming engine for Glitch Strikers, an original game I’m working on, so what better way to do it than to remake Super Mario Bros. Crossover? I plan on using the code I write for this game on many projects, and all of the data for the game is already done, so it seemed like a sensible thing to do. There is very little work this project requires that I wouldn’t have had to already do for Glitch Strikers.

SMBC is also the only project I can work on that doesn’t require anyone else’s help since it doesn’t need any extra art, sound, or music. Releasing updates for it helps to rebuild trust in Exploding Rabbit and keep the community engaged. It may also help to bring additional patrons to Exploding Rabbit. There are several great reasons for continuing to work on it.

Why did you stop development?

There were several reasons I stopped. Here are a few:

The code became a mess due to inexperience while working on it

Flash had been dying for a long time

It was written in ActionScript 3 which was also dying

Building the project became finicky and didn’t work sometimes

I was focused on making the Kickstarter game

I thought maybe Exploding Rabbit shouldn’t be making fan games because I was trying to make it a legit company

Stress and anxiety from the situation I was in made everything in life more difficult and contributed to poor decision-making

Will performance improve?

Yes. The game runs on a technology released last year called WebAssembly (wasm). Wasm support in browsers will continue to improve, and the biggest improvement will come in 2019 when multithreading support is added. Multithreading will allow several parts of the game, like Game Music Emu, to run on separate threads and not slow down the game loop. Another performance upgrade should come when Unity releases an incremental garbage collector. They are releasing an experimental version in 1st quarter of 2019.

I have also done zero performance optimization on the code because my first priority is just to make it work. Some changes, such as object pooling, will increase performance when destroying and instantiating objects.

Will the game be on more platforms? Can I download it?

Currently, the game is only planned as a web game. However, it is possible I may allow downloads in the future.

Will you add levels from games other than Super Mario Bros.?

I am interested in this idea, but it would be released as a separate game. A few years ago, I released a playable demo of Mega Man in Castlevania. The code for that game wasn’t flexible enough to be continued, but now that I have a solid architecture, I may do it again with more levels. It would share code and data with Super Mario Bros. Crossover, so all of the same characters would be playable. This is not a promise. I’m just saying it’s a possibility.